Too.many.choices.

January 26, 2006 10:33 AM

Digital camera upgrade! My Canon S400 is slowly dying and now is the time to start exploring options and saving. Sorry if this topic seems rehashed but the most pertinent thread I can find is two years old (ancient in terms of technology I think).

Sought characteristics:
~$300 (But this is a future purchase so if it's currently ~$400 I'd consider it betting on the price going down)
pretty compact
obviously good picture quality, but "good" is relative so let's just say that I am a user who is taking pics of social events and her knitting, but wouldn't mind being able to flex some photographic muscles in her spare time.
Since I want to take pics of my knitting, something with a pretty good macro mode (or pseudo macro since it will probably be non-SLR) would be a major plus.

I tried DPReview for some rec and the Canon PowerShot A610 jumped at me but I think it's bigger than I'd like (I'd like it small enough to fit in a (snowboarding) jacket). I could also just go for the SD450 but I haven't been too happy with the close ups using my current model.

TIA Mefi Techies!

posted by like_neon to technology (20 comments total)

I just upgraded from a PowerShot A300 to a PowerShot SD550, and I *love* it.

Here's some sample macro photos, downsized from full resolution. Click the thumbnails for bigger images, of course.
posted by mrbill at 10:54 AM on January 26, 2006

Also: The SD550 just won a PCMag Editor's Choice Award.
posted by mrbill at 10:55 AM on January 26, 2006

I own an SD450. I think it's a better value than the SD550. Check the specs for yourself, and decide whether the difference is worth the price.
posted by cribcage at 10:57 AM on January 26, 2006

Anyone have a feeling for what kind of shutter lag there is on the SD550? It looks great, but I have a Canon A85, and it lags three seconds. I hate it.
posted by kjell at 11:18 AM on January 26, 2006

I recently upgraded from an S400 to an SD400. They are mostly the same, so I'll stick to the differences. The new one is surprisingly more portable. Surprising because the S400 isn't huge in the first place. On the specs, the size difference seems small, but for whatever reason it fits much better in a pocket.

The screen is also quite a bit larger. It's as tall as the old one was wide. The quality of the viewfinder is about the same though, since it just uses bigger pixels.

The movie mode is MUCH better. It does 640x480 at 30fps, good enough for DVD, and 320x240 at 60fps (which just looks neat). The S400 movie mode is a bit marginal.

I also really like the control layout on the SD model. With the S400, I would often accidentally switch it to movie mode when I put it in my pocket. The new ones have changed that to a much stiffer slider.

(The SD450 wasn't out when I was looking. I don't think it's a huge change from the SD400.)
posted by smackfu at 11:18 AM on January 26, 2006

I lovelovelove my SD400. And as mrbill's images show, the macro mode is good. I'm able to take clear pictures from as little as 2 inches away.

(Thanks to AskMe for pointing me to this camera.)
posted by raedyn at 11:22 AM on January 26, 2006

I just got the Canon SD450 and, for the price, I love it... you can see one review and sample pictures here. (I'm sure you can dig up other reviews online via google.

Also, check out these other threads:
http://ask.metafilter.com/mefi/30294#476834
http://ask.metafilter.com/mefi/30122#474194
posted by jerryg99 at 11:28 AM on January 26, 2006

I have the SD500 and it's decent - a lack of manual features sort of puts me off though. There is almost no shutter lag and it turns on in a moment - a lot of my friends were surprised by how fast it was.
posted by jedrek at 11:30 AM on January 26, 2006

The SD series supposedly has a much improved shutter lag, according to a friend and fellow Canon fan who researched the issue.
posted by phearlez at 12:13 PM on January 26, 2006

The SD550 has very little (if any?) shutter lag. Nothing at all like the A300. It also appears to use USB2 to transfer photos...
posted by mrbill at 12:51 PM on January 26, 2006

I LOVE my S2 IS. No, that's not quite true, I feel like I'm getting a little advanced for it, but that's probably not the case. Here's why I love it and why you might too:

12x OPTICAL zoom, which is ridiculous because all other cameras are like 4 or 5.

It's got an LCD inside the viewfinder instead of just a glass.

SUPER macromode.

Really good image stabilization.

It's not a pro camera, the ISO only goes up to 400, but it's FUN.

A Flickr group that should show you what it can [and can't] do.
Flickr S2 IS

It might be a bit out of your price range though...
posted by Brainy at 1:04 PM on January 26, 2006

Brainy beat me to it--I have the Canon PowerShot S1 IS, a nearly identical model but only 3.2 megapixels (which is enough for almost anyone). You can pick one up for under $300. It is not a pocket camera, but that huge honkin' zoom and superb optical stabilization come in handy out of doors. The movies it shoots are startlingly sharp and clear, and the internal microphone superb. It is one fun camera.
posted by LarryC at 1:22 PM on January 26, 2006

I came from an S400 to the SD500 by way of the Sony DSC-P200 and will very likely never buy another non-Canon digicam again.

Check DealCam for best prices and you can compare features easily.

I love my SD500 and the only thing I'd change would be to go to the 550 with that bigger screen on the back. Its fast, takes an excellent photo (when its set up and used properly). Here's a macro from yesterday shot freehand. My other Flickr pals were amazed when we met up and saw my little Canon and the results I get with it. I wish it had a more powerful optical zoom but that's the tradeoff for portability (just try and stick the S2 in your pocket! I dares ya!).
posted by fenriq at 1:45 PM on January 26, 2006

Thanks everyone! AskMe comes through once again.
From the responses it looks like I will definately be looking in the Canon family, most likely an SD450/550. I think with my timeframe the price will drop enough to be within budget (and I'm sure Canon will have an "SD650" to tease me)

Thank you so much for the sample pics (Mr. Bill's fourth pic is the type of quality I'd be happy with) that totally helped. And you guys made me really look at the S1/S2, but alas, it's bigger than I desire for now (but damn, gorgeous!).
posted by like_neon at 2:41 PM on January 26, 2006

the fuji f11 is the best cam you can get for 300$, and it's small and chic
(the fuji f10 is ~40$ cheaper and nice too)
posted by suni at 4:05 PM on January 26, 2006

I just got the SD550 and I am very happy with it. As alluded to, there is not a giant difference between the 450 and the 550. If all you do is pull the photos off the camera and throw them onto a computer, you definitely can get away with the lower pixel count. I like to print out stuff, and frequently do a lot of cropping and printing across multiple pieces of paper, so the extra pixels definitely helped tip me toward spending another $100 or so... If all you want is "pretty compact" you should consider the A620 - same number of pixels, but another multiplier of zoom. Also, while the SD550 is plenty small, I was expecting it to be maybe a touch skinnier. If you keep it in a case, it's not something you're going to put into a the front pocket of a pair of tight jeans.
posted by mzurer at 4:52 PM on January 26, 2006

Hm. I just got a Sony DSC-P200 this month, and it's not bad for the just-under-$300 price range. The only thing I don't like about it is that it only takes photos at 72 dpi—definitely didn't know that beforehand. But that resolution probably wouldn't be an issue for you, like_neon.

Fenriq, what didn't you like about the DSC-P200, out of curiosity?
posted by limeonaire at 5:41 PM on January 26, 2006

I've got an SD400. I cannot say enough about it. It's fantastic.

I would seriously advise you, if deciding between an SD400 and an SD450, to go with the 400. They are essentially the same camera, except the 450 has a worse (though larger) screen, a couple extra shooting modes that you probably don't need, and costs $100 more.
posted by Hildago at 7:38 PM on January 26, 2006

Just to chime in on 400 v 450 - There are rumors they rev'ed the models (also SD500 -> SD550) quickly to address LCD cracking and the E18 issue.
posted by mzurer at 8:44 AM on January 27, 2006

Thread may be dead by now, but there are some good deals on the kind of cameras you're looking for today.
posted by Hildago at 8:12 AM on January 28, 2006